Theatre and Drama
Develop your creative practice through acting, directing, writing and performance, preparing for careers across theatre, the creative industries and beyond.
How to apply Apply through UCAS Book an Open Day Chat to us/filters:format(webp)/prod01/channel_2/media/university-of-south-wales/site-assets/images/03-courses/performance/ba-theatre-drama.jpg)
UCAS Code
W403
Start Date
September 2027
Location
Cardiff
Campus Code
B
UCAS Points
96
International students: £17,600*
Course overview
Train as an actor, director, writer and performer. Build a practice that opens doors across theatre, the creative industries, and wherever your ambitions take you.
Whether you want to perform, direct, write or create original theatre, this course gives you the opportunity to explore every stage of the creative process. You'll combine practical performance with theatre theory, developing your own creative voice while building skills in acting, devising, scriptwriting, directing and applied drama. Based in Cardiff, you'll perform throughout your degree, contribute to festivals and productions, and gain professional experience through placements and industry connections.
Why study this course?
What you'll study
Your introduction to theatre, drama and production, year one ranges over acting, devised storytelling and creative and academic writing for theatre.
You’ll put on productions, attend performances and carry out research, with opportunities to audition for student films.
Study acting for stage and screen in this practical module taught by industry professionals.
Attend and critique plays and performances in Cardiff’s thriving creative scene. Learn to create video essays as part of your academic work.
Learn about this critical part of the theatre production process by using classic texts to tell up-to-date stories.
This module can be studied 100% through the medium of Welsh
Utilise performance to discover empowering new approaches to creative academic writing.
Find and deepen your interests in your second year, with the theatre festival at the heart of practical opportunities.
Develop your devising skills to put on a significant performance. You’ll also plan, deliver and evaluate a community applied drama workshop.
Hone your devising skills in this focused module. Use classic Welsh art and mythology to devise your own fresh stories.
This module can be studied 100% through the medium of Welsh
Play your part in putting on the Fringe Festival Initiative. You’ll work on it from curtain up and curtain down in different performance and festival contexts.
Plan, deliver and evaluate a community drama workshop to develop your facilitation skills and see how drama and theatre can be applied in the community.
Take on an industry placement to secure valuable experience and contacts, then focus on and refine your skills in your chosen area with a specialist study.
There will be even more performance and production opportunities plus the chance to respond to a live brief.
Apply your theatre and drama skills to the world of graduate employment through a placement – and related employability-based assessments.
Refine your skills by planning, developing and delivering a performance workshop for a school.
Complete a specialist study in an area of interest. Indicative options are: acting for camera, music and performance or scriptwriting.
Develop your own practice. Carry out research and produce two final performances.
This module can be studied 100% through the medium of Welsh
We regularly review our courses to keep pace with changing skills and employer needs. If a review leads to significant changes, we’ll contact you to explain what’s changing for the coming year.
Teaching and Assessment
Our approach combines practical experience with academic study, helping you develop your skills as a theatre-maker, performer, and critical thinker while preparing you for work in the creative industries and beyond.
You'll learn through workshops, rehearsals, performances, and group projects at our Cardiff campus. As the course progresses, you'll move from staff-directed productions to creating and producing your own work for performance at the Fringe Festival and Immersed Festival.
You'll complete a mix of practical and written assessments, including performances, presentations, and reflective writing. These assessments will help you develop and demonstrate your skills as a performer, theatre-maker, collaborator, and critical thinker.
You will do at least one industry placement as part of your degree, ranging from 30 to 70 hours, to help forge valuable connections and jumpstart your creative career. An enterprise scheme provides support if you want to develop a freelance career.
Cardiff Campus is home to a 160-seat theatre plus professional standard rehearsal rooms and studios on campus in the centre of Cardiff. Our innovation labs support virtual production and immersive theatre – at the cutting edge of current professional practice.
Course Leader
Ian McNish
Ian McNish is Course Leader for BA Theatre and Drama at University of South Wales. Ian leads this full-time, campus-based course with an emphasis on rehearsal and performance, drawing on years of experience in small theatre company leadership, drama lecturing, and course development.
His teaching brings imagination, play, and care to the creative process, all values that are shared across the whole course team.
Through active collaborations with WMC Platform (hip hop theatre), Porters (fringe theatre), and many other organisations, students gain real opportunities to perform, facilitate workshops, and both make and experience theatre beyond the classroom.
“Working through different challenges, such as devising, directing and acting, has developed my skills and prepared me for the acting world.”
Shaila Mudhoo, Theatre and Drama student
Entry Requirements
Additional requirements include:
The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSEs including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.
USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.
How to applyContextual admissions policyAsk us a question96 UCAS points or above
Typical qualification requirements
A Level:
CCC to include a relevant subject
Welsh BACC:
Pass the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Diploma with C in the Skills Challenge Certificate and CC at A Level with a relevant subject
BTEC:
Merit Merit Merit in a relevant subject
Access to HE:
Pass the Access to HE Diploma with a minimum of 96 UCAS tariff points.
T Level:
Pass (C and above)
International applications welcomed:
We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence, please view our dedicated country pages.
International studentsPre-Sessional EnglishEnglish language requirements
International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 4 overall and a minimum of 4 in each component or equivalent.
Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.
If you have previously studied through the medium of English, IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.
If you do not meet the English entry criteria, please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.
Fees and Funding
Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).
*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.
Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
Theatre visits
Students contribute to the cost of some theatre visits and other enrichment activity
Cost: £100
Kit (Uniform and Equipment)
We suggest students invest in a laptop and smartphone. Laptops can be loaned temporarily from the University if you do not have your own.
Cost: Up to £1000
per year
Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).
*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.
Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
Theatre visits
Students contribute to the cost of some theatre visits and other enrichment activity
Cost: £100
Kit (Uniform and Equipment)
We suggest students invest in a laptop and smartphone. Laptops can be loaned temporarily from the University if you do not have your own.
Cost: Up to £1000
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Explore our facilities
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Media Loans
Access industry-standard cameras, lighting, sound and recording gear, supported by free Media Loans and experienced technicians. We have everything you need to help you experiment, refine and bring your work to life with confidence.
How to apply
All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS
You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time).
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Apply direct
Theatre and Drama
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Full-time, 3 years
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September
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Cardiff
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If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.
Applicants accepted through advanced entry may study a different combination of modules to those advertised, as they will be joining a course already in progress. You will be contacted and advised about these modules once your application has been processed and an offer made.
International applicants can apply to us directly. If the University has an in-country team in your region, your application will be assigned to them for assistance.
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